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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25724224">Ignorance Is Not Bliss</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/TigerRequin/pseuds/TigerRequin'>TigerRequin</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Voltron: Legendary Defender</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Galra Keith (Voltron), Hurt Keith (Voltron), I'm Bad At Tagging, Keith (Voltron) Whump</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 11:26:59</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Not Rated</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,335</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25724224</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/TigerRequin/pseuds/TigerRequin</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>This is a take on what could have happened when Keith returned to Voltron right before he broke away from them. This is when Shiro reconnects with Black and Keith sides with the Blades.</p>
<p>Keith got injured during the Blade mission. He comes back to Voltron to explain himself but the team doesn't notice until Keith is so weak that he requests a pod himself.</p>
<p>UPDATE #2: Hi all. Thank you for waiting so patiently. I have updated this story like I mentioned a few months ago because I finally have service again. I hope you like it!</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>176</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Ignorance Is Not Bliss</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hello anyone and everyone who is reading this. This is my second time posting a story but I wanted to make something that was shorter than my last post. That and a lot of my ideas/stories have just been sitting on my computer. I want to keep sharing them, especially if other people also seem to like what I have written. I have sat with this story for awhile, like all of my others, because I revise over and over again. I have decided to finally put this story out there and see what you guys think.<br/>I hope you guys enjoy!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>They had just gotten back from their mission. Keith had been a no show and it could have jeopardized the entire team if Shiro hadn’t been able to reconnect with Black.</p>
<p>The atmosphere was tense as everyone walked onto the bridge. They all had a job assigned to continue help with the relief efforts so they found their respective terminals and got to work. There still wasn’t any sign of Keith and Lance was fuming. He was sure that everyone else on the bridge with him was just as mad.</p>
<p>Then Keith did show up. He had walked onto the bridge headstrong with information to share. Though he did seem a bit hesitant. He could probably feel the tense atmosphere when everyone had turned their attention to him. It certainly hadn’t helped when everyone immediately started to raise their voices in his direction. They all told him how important Voltron was, how important they were. Without them there was no Voltron. No one had been in the mood to hear what Keith had to say.</p>
<p>Allura had sent him away to make up for being absent. He had turned and gone quietly to complete the task. Lance feels bad thinking back. No one had tried to hear what he had to say and he had seemed so resigned once he’d been told off. They all know that Voltron might not exist right now because Keith couldn’t prioritize. Even with that in mind, the image of Keith looking so tired just wouldn’t leave Lance’s mind.</p>
<p>Lance was currently looking at plans built around helping the refugees and freedom fighters. It was a long day and it was wearing on him. His mind kept drifting back to Keith. He couldn’t shake the image of Keith looking tired, looking defeated almost. He tried shaking his head to clear the image and stay focused. It didn’t work. Maybe they had been a little too harsh on him? Keith had only been trying to do what he thought was best in the fight against the Galra, even if it meant participating in missions with the Blades. Lance sighed and rubbed at his eyes. He needed to focus. He’d get his work done and then he’d go and check on Keith when he was finished.</p>
<p>Another fifteen minutes passed and Lance still couldn’t focus. He threw his hands down onto the console in front of him and took a deep breath. He could just check the cameras and make sure Keith was doing ok. He just needed to make sure that Keith was still Keith and that he wasn’t that same tired image that he couldn’t get out of his head.</p>
<p>He logged into the system and selected the cameras in the area that Keith had been sent to work. The screen showed Lance that Keith had started to work because some of the job was done. However, the task hadn’t been finished and Keith wasn’t in view of the camera. He waited a few minutes to see if Keith would come into the frame but he never did. Lance had a bit of a sinking feeling at this. Keith wasn’t the one to abandon work, especially if it were to make up for something that he did. Keith was a hothead but he was a responsible one.</p>
<p>Lance began to check other cameras around the castle ship. He checked the training deck. Maybe Keith wanted to blow off some steam. Nothing appeared there except an empty deck. There weren’t any cameras inside their personal rooms but the cameras in the area of the rooms did have thermal to read heat signatures. He used those cameras to take a look but there still didn’t seem to be any sign of Keith. Lance started scrolling through the list of cameras faster to see if maybe Keith could have wandered anywhere else. Where would Keith have gone? Where could he be?</p>
<p>As Lance continued to scroll through the cameras, he heard the door to the bridge slide open. He turned in his seat to look in the direction of the door and was relieved to see that it was Keith. However, the state of Keith still had Lance on alert. Keith was a little hunched over with his right arm wrapped around his stomach and holding tight to his side. His left arm was braced against the wall for support, though he was trying not to lean so heavily as he walked onto the bridge. Lance took a quick glance around to see that Keith’s entrance had drawn attention, though the others were trying to not let their gazes wander from their own consoles.</p>
<p>“Allura?”</p>
<p>“Yes, Keith. What do you need? Are you looking for more work? Did you finish what I sent you to do?”</p>
<p>“No Allura, I think I…”</p>
<p>“I’m sorry Keith but I do not have time to help you when you refuse to help the team. You need to finish your tasks.” Allura still hadn’t turned away from her console as she spoke. Lance could tell that she was still very upset. Lance looked from Allura back to Keith. Keith looked even more like a kicked puppy than when he had walked into the room. Hunk and Pidge were still trying their best to remain hunched over their consoles, but even they could tell that something was a little off.</p>
<p>“Allura, I think I need…”</p>
<p>“No Keith! What you need is to finish your work! Then we will talk.” Lance jumped at Allura’s tone. He hadn’t expected the princess to actually yell at Keith. Lance looked between all of his teammates before his focus settled on Keith again. It seemed Allura’s shouting had done more damage to Keith’s ailing state.</p>
<p>The next time that Keith spoke, he sounded even quieter and less sure of himself.</p>
<p>“I-I think I need a pod.” With those words, Keith finally dropped. Nobody on the bridge was able to move fast enough to catch Keith as he collapsed onto the floor. Everyone was on the bridge except for Shiro and Coran, and only the other paladins saw Keith collapse as Allura had still refused to turn around. She only knew that Keith had hit the deck when the sound of his body collapsing hit the floor and seemed to echo around the room.</p>
<p>Lance had moved to leave his seat as soon as he saw Keith’s legs buckle. His quick action made him the first one at Keith’s side. He was worried, very worried. If Keith was admitting that he needed a pod, then something was very, seriously wrong. Lance’s hands flitted over Keith’s unresponsive body. Keith’s skin was pale, in even more of a sickly shade than Lance was used to seeing and he noticed that there was sweat keeping his bangs plastered to his forehead. He wanted to turn Keith and get him in the recovery position but he also didn’t know what injuries Keith currently had.</p>
<p>Pidge was the next to Keith’s side before Allura followed and then Hunk. Even though Hunk was the last person to make it to Keith, he was the first to take action. He didn’t hesitate to lift Keith into his arms bridal style and start making his way to the infirmary as quickly as he could while being conscious of Keith in his arms. Keith didn’t make any sound when he was hefted into Hunk’s arms and he didn’t seem to be making any noise as he was being carried either. He just laid there limply. As Hunk left with Keith, Lance caught Allura making a call to Shiro and Coran to meet them.</p>
<p>Hunk managed to be the first one to make it to the infirmary. Lance knew because he saw Shiro and Coran coming up the opposite hall after Hunk had already ducked into the room with Pidge hot on his heels. Hunk settled Keith on one of the exam tables and backed away a few steps to give Shiro and Coran some space. Hunk hadn’t made any noise the entire time since Keith’s collapse. Lance could tell how upset he was in his silence and in his body language. He must have gone into some sort of autodrive to keep his teammate, his friend, safe.</p>
<p>“Hey Hunk, if you want to step outside, that would be ok. You know Keith is in good hands.” Lance was trying to be a good friend, a good support. They didn’t need Hunk fainting on them because of his own caring nature.</p>
<p>Hunk just looked between Lance and Keith before nodding and stepping out. Lance watched as he seemed to head in the direction of the kitchen. Pidge noticed Hunk’s absence and followed after him. She knew where Hunk was most likely going to be right now. He’d even mentioned that making food helped to settle his emotions when they got a little tough to handle.</p>
<p>Lance needed to stay. Maybe he could find a way to help or do something to the benefit of Keith. He’d already let the other paladin down by not being attentive when Keith had first walked onto the bridge earlier that day. As he looked on, before Keith’s Blade outfit had even been removed, he could see something slicking the outside of the material. With Keith now flat on the exam table, he could see his right arm. Keith’s hand, the one that had been holding his side, was red.</p>
<p>Shiro helped to keep Keith still as Coran began to remove the Blade uniform. Once the fabric had been pulled away, the extent of Keith’s injury was revealed. The gash in Keith’s side was large. He had to have made it worse from trying to do the tasks assigned to him after he’d been berated by the team. Lance’s heart dropped into his stomach. He felt ill and not because he couldn’t stomach the sight of Keith’s injury. He felt ill because he could have done something and he hadn’t. He could have listened to Keith. He could have stopped Keith on his way out of the bridge to at least ask him how his mission had gone and if he was ok. The team had been in danger on their mission but Blade missions were notorious for being dangerous, as well. Why hadn’t anyone listened?</p>
<p>Coran continued to look Keith over for injuries but he thankfully didn’t have anymore. With positive confirmation that Keith only had the one, Coran moved forward with dressing and bandaging the wound to at least put pressure and hold everything in place until Keith was in a pod. The pod would take care of the rest, they just needed a reaction from Keith. They wanted to make sure that he would be ok to come out of the pod since he’d collapsed and hadn’t been responsive since.</p>
<p>To try and make Keith a little better before he was placed in a pod, Coran went to put an IV line into the skin on top of Keith’s right hand. The more fluids in someone, the better off they would be in the long run anyway. When the needle broke skin, Keith finally stirred. He made a face that looked like he was in pain before his eyes fluttered open. Shiro quickly took up Keith’s hand but was pushed away. Keith was keeping him at arm’s length for a reason that no one could tell, as he still hadn’t made a noise. Lance took the chance to check on Keith, even if it was for his own sanity.</p>
<p>“Keith, Keith, hey buddy. Do you know where you are?” Keith seemed to be able to lock his gaze onto Lance before that focus quickly wavered and he looked around the room. He seemed to be able to take in the people around him. His gaze went from Lance, to Shiro, to Coran, and Allura before his eyes were back on Lance. Lance watched as Keith’s bottom lip quivered and his voice shook.</p>
<p>“No.”</p>
<p>“That’s ok. That’s ok, Keith. What’s the last thing you remember?” Lance hoped anything. Anything to drag Keith’s mind away from what was making him upset.</p>
<p>“I-I don’t know.” Keith’s hands were rubbing his forehead before they settled in his hair. Lance watched as he pulled. “I don’t know!”</p>
<p>“Do you recognize anyone in the room?” He moved slowly to take Keith’s hands in his. He didn’t need Keith hurting himself any more than he already was. He noticed that Keith took another look around the room again. Lance caught when Keith’s gaze stopped on Shiro.</p>
<p>“Takashi.”</p>
<p>Shiro stepped forward again to replace Lance. He tried taking Keith’s hands as Lance traded places with him but Keith made a face like he had earlier when Coran had put the IV line in his hand. He shook away from Shiro’s touch and continued to keep him at a distance.</p>
<p>“You-You aren’t Takashi.” Shiro was definitely taken aback.</p>
<p>Allura, who had been quietly watching everything a distance away, finally chimed in.</p>
<p>“Keith, what do you mean he isn’t Shiro?” Keith only shook his head.</p>
<p>“Not Shiro.” He was firm and still shaking his head.</p>
<p>Coran decided he needed to break the building tension.</p>
<p>“He could be just a little delirious right now from the blood loss. The sooner we get him into a pod, now that we know he’s going to be ok, the better he’ll be.” Everyone nodded in agreement but Lance noticed that Keith’s eyes had gone wide. It looked like he was trying to push himself up and off the table.</p>
<p>“N-no. No pod.” Coran had to ease Keith back onto the table to keep him from further tearing his injury and falling off the elevated surface.</p>
<p>“You asked for one just a few moments ago.” Shiro was still trying to reason with him. To Lance, it looked like Keith had thrown something off with his statement about him not being Shiro. “It will heal you and make you feel better.”</p>
<p>“No! Why do you ca-care anyway?” Keith’s head lulled to the side. He didn’t have a lot of energy and this prolonged conversation wasn’t helping. “You aren’t Shiro.”</p>
<p>“Keith, look at me. What do you…”</p>
<p>“You all pushed, pushed me away! I’m trying. I wanna help. You don’t care.” Tears were wetting Keith’s cheeks as he shouted and then seemed to deflate. Lance felt horrible as he watched Keith turn his face away from everyone and try to block them out. A little something in Lance told him that Keith was trying to hide and he hated seeing the strong Keith he knew look so small. Lance quickly glanced around the room and noticed that everyone else seemed just as upset and struck by Keith’s display of emotion. Keith wasn’t one to share those so openly.</p>
<p>“We need to get him in a pod and we need to do it quickly. He’s already spent far too much time outside of one as it is. His delirium isn’t helping any with whatever perceived stability he thinks he might have right now.” Coran stayed at Keith’s side as he tried to work him off the table but Lance couldn’t just let Keith worry like this before being placed into a pod.</p>
<p>“Of course we care about you Keith. We all care about you.”</p>
<p>“Then why am I here?”</p>
<p>Lance fell silent to the question. He didn’t really know how to answer it.</p>
<p>“Do you mean why are you in the infirmary?”</p>
<p>Keith’s eyes locked onto Lance. The gaze was unwavering and it kept Lance frozen to the spot where he was standing.</p>
<p>“If anyone had cared, I wouldn’t be here.” His gaze remained on Lance as Shiro stepped in to help Coran get Keith off the table. “No one.”</p>
<p>While Keith was distracted, Coran and Shiro got him off the table and into a pod suit. They worked quickly and carefully so as not to further agitate Keith or his side. He didn’t seem to notice, or at least didn’t fight the two as they worked. Keith only began fighting again when they tried walking him over to a pod that was ready for him.</p>
<p>“No. Don’t wanna go.”</p>
<p>Shiro sighed in what Lance would have called an irritated manner.</p>
<p>“You have to Keith. It will heal you.”</p>
<p>“No.”</p>
<p>“Yes.”</p>
<p>“No.”</p>
<p>“Yes Keith and that is final!”</p>
<p>For a second time, Lance was struck by someone raising their voice at Keith. He wasn’t even sure if he had ever heard Shiro raise his voice like that before.</p>
<p>It seemed that Lance could only watch as Keith struggled against Shiro and Coran to keep from going into the pod. Shiro was able to get an arm around Keith to keep him in the pod while Coran stepped aside to get the pod activated. It closed around Keith but he was still trying to get out. Even though Keith was struggling, the pod did what it was designed to do. Keith became frozen in a position that reminded Lance of the time he fell into the pod accidentally. It made Keith look afraid and Lance didn’t like seeing that expression on the other paladin’s face. He turned away when he couldn’t stand looking anymore. Keith was at least being taken care of now. He could go check in on Hunk and Pidge and see how they were.</p>
<p>Lance was walking to the door when he stopped. Shiro was still in the room and was talking quietly with Coran as Allura stood to the side politely listening. Lance decided that he was going to break the hushed quiet before he left.</p>
<p>“Why didn’t he want to go in the pod?” Shiro had to have an answer. He had that background with Keith that nobody else had. They’d known each other longer than anybody onboard.</p>
<p>“He isn’t claustrophobic, if that’s what you are wondering. He just doesn’t like tight spaces is all. It reminds him of his childhood, I think.” Shiro reached for his neck and scratched. It was almost like he was trying to recall something.</p>
<p>“You aren’t sure? You know more about him than any one of us? And you still made him go in?”</p>
<p>“You know as well as I do Lance that he needed to recover. This will help him. I had to do it for his own good.”</p>
<p>“Couldn’t we have maybe waited until he was a little more aware? We could have even waited until he was a bit more willing. We could have explained it to him. He asked for a pod, we could have made him feel better before throwing him in one when he didn’t want it anymore.”</p>
<p>“He probably won’t even remember what happened. The sooner we got him in one, the better he was going to be anyway.” Shiro turned away from Lance to continue his conversation with Coran.</p>
<p>Lance wasn’t happy with his conversation with Shiro but he did take another look back at Keith. It hurt him to know that they had done that to him, even if it was to help. He looked away and decided that he really did need to go talk to the other paladins now. There wasn’t anything he could do for Keith anyway besides let the pod do its job. As he was stepping into the hallway, the infirmary lighting bathed everything in red. Lance turned back around to see Coran running back and forth between monitors. The pod made a noise and the walls fell. The first thing that Lance watched Keith do was wrap his arms around himself. Then he began to fall. Shiro made a move to catch Keith and was able to stop him from hitting the floor. Keith made a grunt from the jarring motion of being caught. He was trying to shy away from the arms Shiro was trying to wrap around him. Lance walked up beside the two of them and Keith moved more towards him. Shiro relented and helped move Keith’s weight into Lance’s arms.</p>
<p>“Hey samurai, it’s me, Lance.” Lance watched as Keith shivered in his hold. “Shiro, hand me a blanket please.”</p>
<p>Shiro walked away and came back with a blanket from one of the cupboards. Lance took it and wrapped it around Keith’s shoulders. Keith unwrapped his arms and grabbed onto the edges to pull it tighter around himself.</p>
<p>“Is that better?” Lance got no verbal response but he did get a slight nod. “Ok, we don’t know what is wrong with the pod right now so let’s get you back on the table, yeah? How do you feel?” Lance wanted to keep Keith present while they tried to get him comfortable. He did get a noise from Keith but he wasn’t sure if it was in answer to one of his questions. He tried making his way over to the table but Keith wasn’t helping him at all. “We’re going over to the table so that Coran can get another look at you, ok?” Keith shook his head and made a noise. “I can’t hear you samurai. What was that?”</p>
<p>“Don’t touch me!” He tried pushing Lance away. Lance held onto him firmly to make sure he wouldn’t fall to the floor.</p>
<p>“Ok, ok. We need to get you over to the table, though. Is there someone else that can help you?” Another shake of Keith’s head. “Hunk?” Shake. “Pidge?” A nod.</p>
<p>“Pish.”</p>
<p>Lance looked at Coran and Coran went to make a call to the kitchen. By this point, they were all pretty familiar with each other’s habits. Pidge came quickly, though Lance had to keep Keith standing the entire time that they were waiting and Keith felt like he was getting heavier by the minute.</p>
<p>When Pidge did arrive, she immediately walked over to Keith and got an arm around him to help guide him to the table. Lance slowly let them go, making sure that Pidge could carry Keith’s weight. Keith was leaned so heavily on Pidge that she was wobbling with her steps but she did manage to get him over to Coran. She stumbled the last few steps to the table but Coran helped take some of Keith’s weight once she was closer. They lifted Keith onto the table together and she walked back over to Lance.</p>
<p>“I’ll fill you in when I have the chance. How’s Hunk?”</p>
<p>“He’s in a baking frenzy right now and I have been his taste tester for the past half an hour. I hope this gets better soon for everyone’s sake.” Lance looked at her with a somber expression before she was gone as quickly as she had come.</p>
<p>Lance turned his attention back to Keith. His head was rolled to the side and he could tell that his consciousness was fading. Shiro was back at his side and had managed to hold one of Keith’s hands. With Keith so against it earlier, Lance took it as a sign of Keith’s ailing state.</p>
<p>“This isn’t just a reaction from blood loss, is it Coran?”</p>
<p>“No, it’s not. I’ll need to check the wound again.” The suit was pulled down to Keith’s waist and the already red stained bandages were peeled away from Keith’s skin. The wound was still bleeding lazily but there was something new that hadn’t been there before. Along with the slow flow of blood, was a bright green froth and pink ooze. Coran’s face dropped.</p>
<p>“I don’t know how I missed this earlier, I cleaned this.” Coran was shaking his head a little in disbelief. “Get the Blades called up immediately.”</p>
<p>Shiro and Allura ran over to the phone to make the call. No one knew what was going on but the look on Coran’s face was all it took to drive them into action.</p>
<p>Kolivan arrived quickly with one of their medical experts following closely at his heels. They were led straight to the castle ship’s med bay by the entire team minus Coran and Shiro who remained by Keith’s side.</p>
<p>When the door opened to the room, Lance noticed how quiet it seemed. He had to look around the large galras to see that Keith now had a pillow to try and make him more comfortable. He was sweating more heavily than when Hunk had carried him in his arms and his skin was now so pale that it looked gray under the bright lighting. Then Lance realized why it sounded so quiet. The only sound was coming from Keith’s labored breathing.</p>
<p>The medic went in and talked with Coran quietly. The team waited just outside the threshold of the door with baited breath. The medic seemed to nod at something that Coran said before walking over to Keith on the table-turned bed. The medic looked up from Keith to the door and saw the team standing there. There was an odd motion they made towards Kolivan and he turned to the rest of them.</p>
<p>“Keith will be fine. I haven’t seen something this bad on him before but we are familiar with what he is dealing with. Go finish with your duties while we tend to him. You can come back and check on him later.”</p>
<p>Coran helped usher them further away from the door before it was closed in front of them. They all went to the lounge to wait. Hunk brought in all the food he had been preparing but the time they spent together was spent in silence.</p>
<p>Time passed and the snacks were munched on before Lance noticed that Pidge had had enough. She stood from her seat and stomped her way in the direction of the med bay.</p>
<p>“He’s my friend. I want to see him.” That’s all she said before she was gone from the lounge. Hunk and Lance ran after her but they didn’t stop her. They wanted to know how Keith was doing too.</p>
<p>They arrived at the infirmary and the door was no longer closed. They were going to walk in when they noticed Kolivan was standing by the table that Keith was still resting on. They used the wall to hide themselves in a way that they could still see in. Lance knew that hiding wouldn’t help anyone but surely no one wanted to interrupt whatever was going on between Keith and Kolivan either.</p>
<p>Since he didn’t want to focus on the conversation, he tried to focus on Keith. He looked a lot better. He was less pale and seemed to be able to hold conversation a lot better. His head wasn’t rolled to either side and it looked like he had more energy, too. Then Lance noticed something. Kolivan was holding Keith’s hand and Keith didn’t have an issue with it. As Lance was trying to figure out why the Blade’s leader would show a caring side towards Keith, he watched as Kolivan ran his other hand through Keith’s hair. Lance decided that it was ok to feed his curious side this once and he tried listening in on the conversation.</p>
<p>“That was very dangerous what you did, Keith.”</p>
<p>“I’m sorry, Kolivan.”</p>
<p>“You broke our rule. You do remember it?”</p>
<p>“Yes.” Keith’s voice was a little shakier.</p>
<p>“Why did you break our rule?”</p>
<p>“The team. They weren’t happy with me. I tried. I tried, Kolivan.”</p>
<p>“There’s no need to cry, kit. Don’t go getting worked up now.” Lance was confused by the gentle tone in Kolivan’s voice.</p>
<p>“But Kolivan, they were so upset.”</p>
<p>“I know, I know. You can tell me why and we can talk about it when you’re better. Save your strength right now and get your rest.”</p>
<p>“But, Koliv…”</p>
<p>“That’s enough, kit. You need your rest. The poison did a number on you and you’re still going to have to explain yourself to your team.”</p>
<p>“…Please. Take me back to base.”</p>
<p>“Are you sure, Keith? Are you sure you want to make that decision right now?” Keith seemed to pause before he whispered his answer.</p>
<p>Lance wanted to hear what was going on but he heard someone coming down the hallway. Hunk and Pidge hadn’t heard the incoming footsteps so he quickly ushered them away back to the lounge.</p>
<p>They got as comfortable as they could while thinking about what they had just witnessed.</p>
<p>“What is Keith to Kolivan?”</p>
<p>“We don’t know Pidge.” Lance sighed.</p>
<p>“Is he going to leave for the Blades?” Hunk was twisting his hands in his lap. “No no. He wouldn’t do that. Would he?”</p>
<p>“Wait, Lance.”</p>
<p>“Yeah?”</p>
<p>“You said that you were going to update us when I had to come and get Keith back on the table. Spill.”</p>
<p>Before Lance could talk, Coran entered the room.</p>
<p>“Ladies and gents, Keith is in a pod and should be on a full track to recovery.”</p>
<p>“Thank you Coran.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>After Lance explained what had happened in the infirmary and even what he though about the whole situation, Kolivan entered the room.</p>
<p>“Keith will be in shortly to talk with you all.” Then he left.</p>
<p>The team waited quietly for Keith’s arrival. It took a few minutes before Keith came shuffling in with his eyes downcast. A blanket was wrapped around his shoulders, reminding Lance of when he had first come out of the pod. He sat down on the end seat of the couch.</p>
<p>“We’re glad to see that you are better Keith.” Keith finally looked up from his hands to make eye contact with Hunk.</p>
<p>“Yeah, what happened?” His gaze went to Pidge. He didn’t answer right away, almost like he was gathering what he wanted to say in his head.</p>
<p>“I was cut with a blade covered in a toxin. That toxin activates when it meets blood. That’s all.”</p>
<p>“Are you sure? You looked ready to die!” Pidge’s outburst caught everyone off guard, except Keith.</p>
<p>“I just didn’t get help right away and didn’t know that the blade had been covered in the toxin. If I’d known, I would have treated it right away.” Lance wanted to ask something. It was on the tip of his tongue but he just couldn’t speak the words. Keith finally turned his attention to him, though, and he couldn’t keep the words to himself.</p>
<p>“Are you ok?” Keith’s eyes seemed to soften at that.</p>
<p>“Yeah, Lance. I’m going to be.”</p>
<p>“What are you going to do?” Keith took a moment and looked between the people he had grown with, learned with.</p>
<p>“I’m returning with Kolivan to the Blades. I see that there isn’t a place for me here anymore. Black has Shiro back and Red has you Lance. Blue has Allura. There are five lions and now there are six of us. Seeing as you all fit into your places, I’m going to go fit into mine.”</p>
<p>“But, Keith…”</p>
<p>Lance’s words died on his lips when he noticed Kolivan make entry into the room. This isn’t what Lance wanted when he’d gone to Keith earlier with his own concerns of being kicked off the team.<br/>
</p>
<p>“Have you been able to talk with them, Keith?”</p>
<p>“Yes, I told them about the injury and my plans moving forward.”</p>
<p>“Good, we will be departing then. We’re ready to go. Say your goodbyes.” Keith nodded and stood to follow. The team also stood and began to follow Keith. They could only watch as Keith got into Kolivan’s ship and prepared to leave. Lance looked around and noticed how out of spirits everyone was.</p>
<p>The doors began closing on the craft and Lance couldn’t stop himself from shouting.</p>
<p>“We’re sorry. We care. We love you!”</p>
<p>He knew Keith had heard him. He had barely caught the way Keith had moved his arm over his chest, but it had been there.</p>
<p>Lance reeled a bit at the thought that Keith was actually leaving and that they would now be down a teammate. Not just any teammate either. A teammate that had been with them since day one and had helped build the team that they currently were.</p>
<p>What had they done?</p>
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